WASHINGTON —The Census 2000 results are now available for the Indian American community, but what do they mean? As a community, the Indian American population in the United States has dramatically increased by almost 106 percent from 1990 to 2000, comprising 1.678 million of the U.S. population, rising by more than twofold from 815,447 in 1990, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

This is the highest increase in the Asian American community, which is the fastest growing community as a whole in the United States; the Indian American community is now the third largest Asian American group in the country behind Chinese and Filipino Americans. Ten years ago Indian Americans ranked fourth in the group, behind Japanese Americans.

Doubling to nearly 1.7 million people, the Census results show that the Indian American community has grown at a rate of 7.6 percent a year in the last ten years.

According to IACPA interpretation, a key factor that accounts for the rising numbers in the Indian American community is the influx of H-1B visa holders and their families (spouses and children) who have helped stimulate economic growth at unprecedented rates in the last several years.

The number of H-1B visas issued to those from India jumped from 2,697 in 1990 to 15,228 in 1995 to 55,047 in 2000, according to figures from the State Department.

IACPA sees that this sharp rise in the number of H-1B visa holders has fueled the growth in the Indian American community. This has particularly occurred from 1997 to 2000, when considering the Indian American population was 1.215 million in 1997, according to an estimate given by Professor Sharon Lee of Portland State University. The Indian American community now stands at 1.678 million in population.

Some growth in the Indian American community can also be attributed to immigrants being admitted between 1990-2000 with numbers varying between 30,000 and 45,000 from India annually achieving permanent residence, as noted in materials from the Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS).

According to IACPA’s analysis, on a more general level, the numbers show that we have a population roughly equivalent to the state of Nebraska, which indicates that if all of our community lived in one state, we would have three Indian American members of Congress.

Also according to Census figures, Indian Americans represent .6 percent of the U.S. population;

According to IACPA analysis, this would entail that the Indian American community should have at least 45 State legislators of Indian origin, as opposed to the two who currently hold office, when considering there are 7,424 State legislators nationwide, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures

"The realization that we need to take an active role in the political process is one we must make as a community, soon," said Prem Shunmugavelu, Political Associate at IACPA. "Political activism needs to grow at the same rate that our population has grown; the hope is that the rise in numbers will serve as a catalyst to enhance political activity in our community and our civic engagement in mainstream society."

He said he hopes that this "would lead the community to participate in activities such as voting in greater numbers and electing Indian Americans to office."

Shunmugavelu stressed that "the time to act is now."